


A Little Bit of Sweetness in a Bitter World

by jubilantscribbler



Series: The World is Quieter Now, But at Least You're Here with Me [2]
Category: Camp Camp (Web Series)
Genre: M/M, No Zombies Here, Post-Apocalypse, Valentine's Day Special
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-16 17:53:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29457786
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jubilantscribbler/pseuds/jubilantscribbler
Summary: It’s been the end of the world, so to speak, and time is meaningless, but actions mean everything.  And every action they take must be taken towards their survival....So to speak.But even when surviving in a post-apocalyptic world, they’re allowed to indulge in a little bit of sweetness, right?  David thinks so, at the very least.
Relationships: David/Jasper (Camp Camp)
Series: The World is Quieter Now, But at Least You're Here with Me [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2163714
Comments: 1
Kudos: 4





	A Little Bit of Sweetness in a Bitter World

**Author's Note:**

> Me: Any aus out here that want to be the Valentine's Day special?  
> My WIPs, raising their hands: Oh me! Pick me, I count, I literally fit the bill!  
> Me, pointing at the one au with no hand raised: :) You

"You think calendars are still a hot commodity in this day and age?" Jasper tosses over a damp, wrinkly mess of paper that looks to be the remains of a calendar. David catches it easily and flips through the pages. The year proudly states "2021", likely made in the last year before the natural disasters struck all at once. Each page displays a different picture of nature, with scenes varying from mountains to the ocean to forest and even to jungles. It's almost ironic, he thinks, these images of peace and tranquility. 

"Probably not. I don't remember the last time I kept track of the days." He remembers days where he would eagerly mark off each day, always happy to welcome the next with a smile. Each date was important. Each day was worth remembering. Now, he's just happy to wake up and still find Jasper laying next to him. 

But those are only on the good days.

"I was thinking..." Jasper trails off, wandering the shelves of the long abandoned store. "You think we missed out on a bunch of holidays?"

"Probably." David lets out a hum as he places the calendar down on an empty shelf and examines the remaining oddities left behind by scavengers. "It's been cold for a while, so we probably missed Christmas."

"And New Years. Davey, look!" Jasper grabs his attention to hold up a chipped mug. Between the spaces of the empty shelves, David can't help the chuckle that escapes him when he reads the words. " ** _Coffee Helps Me Poop_.**" The brunet sighs languidly as he looks over the mug with a look of nostalgia. "God, I miss coffee."

"Maybe we'll find a bag of beans somewhere in one of those houses." Though they both know his words are more of an empty comfort than ones of hope. Still, Jasper brightens at the idea of it, and it's enough to make David smile.

"Yeah, maybe. Oh, but I could make due with leftover grinds."

"Gross."

"Hey man, beggars can't be choosers, and we can always just give them a good wash in the river!"

"No!" Despite his protests, David laughs anyways. "I'm sure we can find a bag of something for you. I think we can try that um, dandelion coffee?"

" _Gross_." This time Jasper's the one pulling a face. "That stuff's made of dandelion roots! Fucking gnarly as hell, man."

"Beggars can't be choosers," he teases lightly. "And anyways, dandelions are everywhere! I'm sure we can roast some roots and make something good."

"If you make it for me, I guess I have no choice." Jasper sighs dramatically as he puts the mug down. With a giggle, David leaves his spot by the empty shelves and rejoins him. Jasper leans over to kiss his cheek, lips pressing gently over now familiar scars. A warm smile crosses his features as he cups Jasper's cheek.

"So I guess this place was no good either, huh?"

"Nah." Jasper shrugs and leans into David's touch. "But it's not like we're surprised." 

Which is true. The two of them happened upon this empty town much like someone else before them. The houses were already looted, stores emptied, and bodies either half buried or left to rot. They'd taken care of the few that were left forgotten, placing plucked dandelions on the makeshift mounds in remembrance. David always found it sad how there were so many bodies still left over from the disasters. So many lives, so many stories left to rot in the open air as survivors walked over them without a second thought.

He remembers the early days, when he and Jasper had no choice but to loot the bodies as well. It was sickening, but they had to survive. He remembers when they walked over bodies, leaving them to rot in the open air, never daring to spare another glance in fear of getting sick.

Now they never get sick. The sight of bodies no longer made them terrified of their own mortality, but rather, they now placed it upon themselves to treat these lost lives with more respect as they continue to tread this ground alone and alive together. It's the least they can do. 

"Hey, man." Jasper's soft voice breaks his thoughts, and David blinks back to the present. "Let's say we try a few more places before bouncing, yeah?"

"...Yeah." David pulls his hand away just to take Jasper's instead. "Sounds like a good plan."

The two of them leave the store and walk down the strip. Broken windows and doors hanging from a hinge are passed by with an ease they've grown accustomed to, allowing a lingering glance to see what the stores used to promise to sell. Clothes, shoes, things that would have been useful had they stumbled upon this strip mall months in advance. Now all that remain are empty shelves and splashes of blood that neither want to entertain wondering about. They continue past more empty stores, still glancing inside in hopes of finding something accidentally left behind. Instead, they stumble upon a novelty store, similar to the one that used to house calendars. Jasper jabs his thumb at it.

"Wanna give it a shot?"

"Sure." 

They're not sure what they're looking for in a novelty store. The knick knacks they once sold are either broken or long gone. David lets go of Jasper's hand to continue perusing the shelves. A few toys are scattered here and there in pieces, perhaps stepped on in a mad rush to find things of use, otherwise ignored in pursuit of other items. There was probably someone out there who would have liked these toys. 

...And maybe, not anymore. He leans down and picks up a dirtied plushie. Turning it back and forth in his hands, the thought of children enters his mind, and he quietly stores it into his backpack. They've come across a child or two in their journeys. It was always surprising, stumbling across a kid on their lonesome. They'd always try and offer help, but the children are always much more suspicious of them than they are of the children.

It makes sense, doesn't it? 

The children always ran away before they could do anything to help. He would always want to chase after them but...

He shakes his head. That would just scare them away, he knows this. They've come across settlements where kids still live with their parents in a promised safety, only to have to watch as it goes up in flames (it always goes up in flames, fitting that it's something man made that manages to extinguish the rest of them instead of nature itself) as they either perished or ran off, never to be seen again.

He knows a kid will never accept this gift from him. He knows it's a stupid thought. 

But.

He'll keep it. Just in case.

He's sure the dead ones would prefer a plushie over a dandelion anyways.

"Found anything?" He turns at Jasper's voice, a tired smile on his face. 

"Not really. Just this stuffed toy."

"Ah." Jasper doesn't question him, instead bending down and picking up a little car. "Always liked these little dudes."

"I remember you collected them when they were popular." David watches as he rolls the wheels against his palm, letting it run in the air before turning it this way and that.

"Hot Wheels will always be popular in my heart." Jasper's smile turns lighthearted as he pockets it. David doesn't question it. "I saw a door to the backroom earlier. Tried opening it, but it was locked up good." He pauses for a moment before giving David a look. "Real good."

David's heart jumps at the implications, as well as sinks. There's no telling what they will find behind a locked door. "We'll just have to be careful."

"Right." Jasper reaches behind him and pulls out his trusty pipe. "I'll kick it down."

"Okay." David reaches inside his jacket to pull out his knife. "I'll keep you covered."

Jasper simply nods as they walk towards the back room's door. The brunet lifts his leg up and positions it right by the doorknob. A quick nod to David is followed up with a powerful kick and a curse. The door remains intact and unbudged with only a boot print to show Jasper’s efforts.

Of course.

"It's metal." Jasper grumbles as he hops around on his good foot.

"You alright?"

"Yeah, don't sweat it." With a final hop, he settles down and jostles the handle. Locked. "No wonder it's untouched. No one's been able to open it. Unless..." Jasper turns to David with a playful smirk.

"...Unless?"

"Unless we lockpick it open."

"Jasp." David sighs as he crosses his arms. "For the last time, we don't know how to do that."

"C'mooon!" He looks towards David with big, round, pleading eyes. David turns away to avoid his stare. "I know you know how. You were a rebel as a kid! You got into places no one else could!"

"But that was ages ago!"

"Maybe it's still floatin' around in there!" Jasper creeps closer to David and nudges him. "C'mon, please? At least try? For wittle ol' me?"

Only a few seconds pass before David lets out a defeated groan. "...Fine! But I'd need something to try and unlock it.”

"Jammin'. What kinda stuff do you need?"

"Paperclips. Just two." David kneels down closer to the door to look at the lock. There's some damage around the keyhole area, but it shouldn't be a problem for him. "Um, I don't know if there's any stores around here that have some but-"

"Don't sweat it. I'll go sniff some out for ya." Jasper's gone in that instant, and that just leaves David alone with this lock and his thoughts. What could be in there, he wonders? Supplies? He looks around the store with its toys and novelty items. Maybe not. Probably just products or cleaning supplies.

Maybe a body.

The thought dampens his mood a bit. But if there truly is a body in there, then it wouldn't hurt for him and Jasper to take it out and lay it to rest. Just like the other bodies they've come across. They've been lucky thus far to never have encountered anyone familiar.

But then again...

It wasn't like they originally came from the West Coast. Both their homes actually lie somewhere in the East, and now that they were still slowly making their way across the States, it'd only be a matter of time before they start recognizing familiar faces. The thought of it makes his heart sink.

"Found some!" Jasper pops right over to interrupt his thoughts, and David smiles in relief as his boyfriend kneels down besides him. If it weren't for Jasper, who knows how many times he'd be lost to his thoughts like this? 

"Thanks."

"Anytime, doll." He presses another kiss to David's cheek as David giggles. "So how's this work?"

"Well..." He takes a paperclip and straightens the whole thing out. Once it's straight, he bends the pliable metal in half until both sides are flush against the other. From where the paperclip is bent in half, he takes the end of it and carefully bends it at a right angle. He then takes the loose ends of the paperclip and twists them together, keeping it whole and stable. The little L shape he makes out of it is presented to Jasper. "This is what I'm going to put at the bottom of the lock, right here." He puts the L shaped paperclip at the bottom of the lock, leaving it hanging as he starts working on the next paperclip. "This one is gonna be tricky, since it's got smaller uh, details to it."

"Maybe we can try bending it against a shelf or something?"

"Mm, something thinner."

"Hmm." Jasper looks around before his eyes brighten as he picks up David's discarded knife. "How's this for thinner?"

"My hero," he teases lightly, kissing Jasper's cheek in thanks. He takes the next paperclip and only unbends it twice. Taking the edge of his knife, he carefully bends the very end of it into a W-like shape. He runs his finger over the shape of it, the W no longer than the tip of his finger. "This is what I'm gonna use to try and get the lock to unlock."

"Very descriptive." Jasper nods along as David sets to work with his improvised tools. 

He pushes the W tool in above the L as he holds the bottom tool down, and starts to wiggle the W up and down, jostling it every once in a while until he hears the familiar click. He turns both tools at the same time successfully and turns to Jasper with a big grin.

"Still got it."

"I knew you did!" Jasper whoops as he pulls David into a hug. "I love you so much, my lock picking little nerd!"

"Jasp!" David laughs as Jasper starts rubbing their cheeks together. "You know I wasn't a nerd when I learned how to do this."

"Fine." The brunet rolls his eyes as he hugs David tighter. "My little bad boy."

"And I'm taller."

"My BIG bad boy."

"Thank you," he says sweetly, rubbing their noses together. "I do like the sound of that."

"Anything for you, babe." Jasper chuckles as they both turn their attention back to the unlocked door. "What do you think is behind there?"

"Dunno." He parts from Jasper a bit unwillingly to pocket the tools and pick up his knife. "But only one way to find out, right?"

"Right." Jasper takes out his pipe once more and holds it at the ready, his other hand on the handle as David stands prepared by his side. "1, 2..."

Three never gets spoken out loud as Jasper slams the door open, barreling in with his pipe raised high above him. What greets them is...

No one.

"Damn, did all that for nothing, huh?" He puts his pipe back into its little spot as David keeps his knife out.

"Better it be nothing than someone with a working gun, dear."

"True that." Jasper takes a gander around the room, noting the modestly sized storage room and the shelving unit that works almost as a divide. He jabs his thumb at the other side of the unit. "I'll take that half of the room."

"Then I'll take this half." They nod towards each other and start their search.

It's been a while since David's seen full shelves of anything. Or, well, more occupied shelves. There are boxes scattered here and there, mostly of the same things that linger outside still. He takes a few more stuffed animals, storing them in his pack for a later burial. As he searches through another box, he blinks at his odd little discovery. Digging out from under the rest of the merchandise, he chuckles to himself as he holds up a little gimmicky keychain.

A little heart-shaped character is holding a card that reads, " _ **My heart belongs to you!**_ " in cheesy cursive. The strap looks like the usual beady sort that can easily snap off. David digs around some more, hoping to find others. Jasper used to love these things when they were kids, opting to spend quarters trying to get quirky little keychains of popular cartoon characters rather than something sensible, like a gumball or candy. David quickly finds another one wrapped in plastic packaging and swiftly removes it. This one is apple shaped, but the face and posture are exactly the same. The words for this one read instead, " _ **You're the apple of my eye!**_ " in the same cheesy cursive. He's about to search for more when he hears an excited gasp coming from Jasper.

"What did you find?"

"No-don't-come-over-here!" Normally, words like that coming from Jasper would alarm him, but he could recognize that giddy tone anywhere.

"You sure?"

"Yes!" 

David smiles as he pockets the matching keychains. "Alright. Call out if you need me for anything."

"You got it, dudeski." 

David returns to searching through more boxes and finds nothing particularly useful in any of them. There's some loose paper clips that he finds however, and he decides that taking those won't be such a bad idea. He looks around the shelves and finds a screwdriver lying forgotten on one of the shelves. He takes that as well, noting the shape of the head. 

Flat.

He never could find one of these back in the day. They were surprisingly easy to misplace when he really needed one. 

More searching yields less results, although he does find something even more delightful than the matching keychains. After a bit of fiddling, he quickly stuffs it into his pack before Jasper can even notice and takes a quick lookover his half of the room. 

All the boxes have been searched, and nothing of use was left behind. He's tempted to peek his head over to Jasper's side, but he knows better than to spoil a surprise that Jasper has planned. Instead, he calls out, "You finished yet?"

"Yeah, just about." There's some grunting and thumping as Jasper puts something aside. "Couldn't find anything useful except for some rubber bands. And- oh!" There's some more scuffling as Jasper makes a pleased sound. "Holy shit, dude- come over here!"

David makes his way over and finds Jasper holding up a white box with a red plus sign on it. Quickly, he rushes over and holds it as well. "...No way."

"I'm gonna open it." Jasper grins as he undoes the clasps. "It's been a goddamn while since we came across one of these guys!" 

"In pristine condition too," David mumbles as the top pops off. Inside are bunches of unused band-aids, gauze, alcohol wipes, little packets of various ointments, painkillers-

"Jackpot! Literally the jackpot!" They set the first-aid kit down gently as they go through the supplies. "There's even some peroxide in here, holy shit-"

"These pills haven't expired yet either." 

"All good things come in first-aid kits." They carefully pack everything back up into the kit and store it in Jasper's pack. "We can sort things out once we get back to the campsite."

"Agreed." They both stand up and take another gander around the room. Though the back room didn't hold much, it did hold a few things they could make use of. Jasper flashes David a smile and holds out his hand. 

"Ready to boogie?"

David laughs as he takes Jasper's hand. "I couldn't have phrased it better myself." 

The two of them exit the store, shielding their eyes as the sun reflects off the melting snow around them. Jasper sighs as they look around the abandoned strip mall once more. 

"Sucks none of them had any food."

"I'm not really surprised. But there were a couple of granola bars." 

Jasper flinches. "Yeah, but the Nature Valley kind. I bet those fuckers got left behind for a _reason_ , Davey."

David flashes him an innocent grin. "Beggars can't be choosers!"

"And soon we'll be beggars without any working teeth. And not a dentist in sight!"

"We'll be fine. You ate a bathtub twinkie before."

"Yeah, but at least it was soft." They begin to walk off the path, snow crunching under their boots as they walk across the roads littered with abandoned cars. Some look broken into, others burnt from explosions or fires that could have resulted right at the start of the panic, or perhaps even after. A breeze brushes past them, taking a loose flyer along with it. They cross more roads and streets, ignoring the stretch of houses that loom in the distance before them and opting for the bordering forest instead. A familiar clearing opens up to them as they look around carefully to make sure no one else has stumbled across it. David looks about for tracks that aren't their own in the snow.

Nothing. 

Jasper makes a noise to indicate that they're both safe, and together, they start setting up their camp. An old tent is pitched carefully, now so thoroughly used and battered that David fears he may need to find or scavenge a replacement somewhere. Jasper goes about gathering what branches and kindling he can. "Hey Davey," he calls out, out of sight but still a quick jog away. "You think I can punch this tree to pieces for firewood?"

"We've had this discussion so many times before- no. And you've already tried doing that, remember?" 

"Bummer." Still, David waits and hears the familiar sound of a thump and a resounding, "Ow!" before shaking his head and getting the campfire set up for Jasper. By the time Jasper returns to the site, David's already begun going though his pack and taking out what little food they have. He picks up a can of beans and sighs. It would be nice if they could stumble upon some wild vegetables right about now, but alas, maybe it was still too early to hope for such miracles. Well, they can share this can of beans for dinner tonight. Maybe they'll have better luck finding more food tomorrow.

"Guess who bears gifts of warmth!" For now, however, worrying over their food rations can wait. David smiles up at his boyfriend and watches as he dumps his whole collection of wood onto the makeshift campfire.

"You do!"

"Damn straight." Jasper plops down next to him and starts rearranging the wood to a more suitable placement, taking out their old flint and broken knife to get the fire going. They sit in silence as the sparks catch on the driest wood that Jasper could find, and as they warm up, Jasper makes a thoughtful hum. "Wonder what today is."

"A cold day," David answers, huddling closer to Jasper as the brunet chuckles. Jasper wraps an arm around him and draws the ginger in close.

"Nah, I meant date wise."

"The calendar got you thinking?" Flashes of those peaceful, serene shots of nature echo in his mind, and David wonders how many of those places are still intact. Are still as serene as they once were before.

The woods are as quiet as they've ever been for the past months or so. He closes his eyes, remembering the nights in which he could hear the crickets singing their songs, when there were things to worry about in the woods, when he could go to bed and hear the call of the coyotes, when there was life in all the houses, and the most he had to worry about was what he needed to prepare for dinner the next day.

"A little bit." Jasper leans against him, no doubt lost in his own head as well. "I was just thinking, y'know, if time is meaningless and so are dates then technically... any day can be a holiday."

"What are you saying?" 

Instead of an answer, Jasper leans over to his pack and starts digging through it. He grins as he finds what he's looking for, and pulls out an old box of chocolates. "Tadaaaah!"

"...How old are these?"

"Dunno, dude." Jasper drops the chocolates on his lap before pulling out a card or three. The first one features an old fisherman comedically fishing up a big, red heart, with the words on it reading, " _ **You're quite the catch, Valentine!**_ " With a soft smile, David opens the card to find the inner message reading, " _ **As the kids would say, you're off the hook!**_ " David laughs as he reads those words. The next two cards read just as cheesy, he finds.

A card with a puppy dog with huge eyes stares at him with a message reading, " _ **Cute puppies aren't the only things melting hearts this year...**_ " Opening it, he finds a message that reads, " _ **The icebergs are melting too! Oh, and you melt my heart as well, Valentine :)**_ " He can't help but sigh at that message. Oddly on point, that one.

The last card is more beautifully crafted, with roses adorning the page and a cursive font decorating the front of it. " _ **Dozens of roses cannot compare to the beauty of our love.**_ " David opens it up to find two messages written in, one typed in the same font as the cover, and one scrawled in haphazardly with what looks to be a pen that gave out more than once. The card’s message reads: " _ **Here's to another year with you, my dear love.**_ "

His eyes drift down to the handwritten one, a handwriting so familiar to him that he’s surprised how little he’s seen of it lately. " _Heya Davey, ” _it starts out, _“ I know these past months or so have been super wack, but I'm grateful that you've been here with me this entire time. I don't know what the future holds for us or the world, but as long as I'm with you, I think I can bite through whatever curveballs the world throws at us. Thanks for always being off the heezy and super fly. With all my love, Jasper._"

David wipes a tear away before turning to give Jasper a kiss. They melt into each other, arms wrapped tight as though the fear of a breeze tearing them apart is more life-threatening than the danger they walk through every day. Pulling apart is difficult when all David wants to do is kiss Jasper again and feel him against him. But then, he'd never get to see those blue eyes stare at him lovingly, now would he?

"Happy Valentine's Day, Davey." Jasper speaks softly as he gently brushes David's tears away with a smile. "I know it ain't much but, it was all I could find in that store."

"No, Jasp, this is all- this is wonderful. I love all of this." David hugs the cards to his chest and laughs, before remembering his own gifts. "Oh! Hold on a minute." David pulls out the two keychains and hands them to Jasper. "They aren't much, but they were all I could find in those boxes."

"Aww, Davey!" Jasper takes them both and holds them up against the backlight of the setting sun. "Wouldja look at that - they're matching!"

"Yeah," he responds shyly, kicking at the earth under their feet. "I-I figured I'd let you choose which one you like the most, and then I can take the other one, and then it's like, even if we're apart for a little bit, we'll still have something that'll keep us together, even if it's spiritually?"

Jasper turns his attention to David, a bright smile on his face as he cups David's cheek with his free hand. "You big goof, nothing's gonna be able to keep us apart at this rate, huh?"

"You're right- oh! Before I forget." David giggles and digs through his bag one last time. He pulls out a stuffed animal- or rather, a stuffed Pokemon. To find one of these little guys hiding in the backroom, surely, an employee had meant to keep it for themselves as a gift for their own significant other. He hopes they didn't mind that he took the cute little Pikachu and added an embellishment of his own. With the same shyness from before, David presents the plush to Jasper, watching his eyes light up when he catches sight of the fake rose that David had haphazardly affixed to its paw with a stray rubber band he'd found lying around.

"No. Way." Jasper takes it from his hands and looks it over. "...Davey!"

"I found it while we were looking for supplies." He scratches the back of his head, no doubt the blush already forming on his cheeks is getting redder as Jasper stares at him with his big, round eyes tearing up like that. "And I know how much you still love Pokemon to this day, so I thought maybe you'd like this too? A-and I figured I'd make it, you know! A little more personal with the um, with that rose I found." Technically, he'd torn it off a different stuffed animal, but Jasper didn't need to know that.

"I love it," Jasper whispers, already cuddling it close to his chest. "Fuck, I love you so much, Davey." 

"I love you too, Jasp." 

Jasper quickly plants another kiss on David, pulling a part just for a moment to press another, more lingering one on his lips. By the time the two of them part again, they sit together breathless, a warmth spreading from their chest as they cuddle close together.

“Hey,” Jasper speaks softly, taking the chocolates in one hand while keeping his arm wrapped around his little stuffed toy. “Let’s say we eat this for dinner instead? I don’t think chocolate can go bad that quickly.”

There’s nutrition to take into account in a survival situation, David thinks. But his fingers move anyways, tugging the plastic cling wrap off as they open the little box of delights open. They can worry about nutrition later. It’s not like they were looking forward to another night of beans anyways.

It’s an indulgence, but one they so rightly deserve.

For that moment, the two of them simply bask in the light of their love, happily going over their gifts and idly talking to each other over the light of the campfire. Even if it was for a moment, for once, the woods felt alive again with the noise of the chatter.

And in that moment, it felt as though everything was alright in the world. 

**Author's Note:**

> Will I ever use this AU for another holiday when I really shouldn't?
> 
> Maybe.


End file.
